Urology Question

Kegels and ab work, but you have to be really dedicated. Kegels also have some excellent side benefits in the bedroom...

I have no personal experience with this treatment, but I have heard from a few doctors that there is a biofeedback treatment for strengthening a woman's pelvic floor muscles that works WONDERFULLY for incontinence. I've also heard that this type is usually covered by insurance. Good luck!

I have had this problem too. Kegels combined with abdominal crunches helps. It seems to come back when I stop doing ab exercises. J.

I haven't had the problem, but aren't Kegel exercises supposed to help? I think you need to be pretty committed to doing them to get good results. Have you tried them?

Kegal exercises do wonders. I have 11 year old triplets and never had a problem, thanks to these little exercises. Start off trying them when you have to urinate. While "going" try to stop "going" and hold it for a few seconds then start again, then stop again etc. This works the muscles and helps you to hold urine in. After you get the hang of it, you can contract that muscle anytime, anywhere. Just to strengthen it. While watching TV, driving, on the computer. Hope it works for you!

After years of Kegel, lots of money in panty liners and Depends....I had the surgery that lifted my bladder. Best best thing I ever did. The surgery lasted maybe an hour. I was home that day. The down side is that you cannot lift the kids for about a week (my boys were 25 lbs each at the time). That was the only down side. See your urologist and get yourself a live in for a week and your life will be changed. Good luck!

Make sure your nutition is up to par check with a nutritionist and have you been doing kegeling?

I had the same issue after giving birth to my youngest 7 years ago. I thought it would get better and it never did. It was so bad that I had to wear a pad everyday. I finally went to see a DR and had a sling placed over my bladder to hold it up. In my case, by 10 pounder of a son did a number on my muscles and they never returned to normal. The good news for me was the surgery (in and out in one day) was covered by my insurance so I only ended paying a little. It might be worth it for you to start exploring options.

Hi K.-
Your regular Gyn baby doctor should have told you about this possibly happening. If you think about it takes a couple of years for your system to get back to somewhat normal hormonal level....It won't be 100% like it was before gettingt Prego...
There should be an answer from your Gyn or they should be recommend someone.
I would have had it looked at before now, it might be you need a medication for a bit to re-settle stuff! or it could be IBS. (Irritible Bowel Syndrome).
Definately try to eat a regular diet. I normally try to eat
a slightly high fiber diet with the fiber mid day so by morning I can have a regular movement and have a "cleaned out" system the rest of the day. It might take a couple of weeks to adjust to this but it has helped me. I'm got a busy schedule that I can' t be taking a " break" every 1/2 hr because I'm not on a regular schedule and I have drive that I can't pull into agas station very easily.
- The other thing is your fluid level. it's vital to keep thing going regular. I normally try to drink atleast 1/2 gal of water and maybe diluted juice for something different.
when you're takinga water break rty to relax and calm yourself during these moments....it might help too! J.

My husband works in the medical field and I asked him about this.
This is a common issue among women with children yet seldom talked about. The medical term is SUI or stress urinary incontinence.
The best thing to do is to see either a urologist who specializes in female urology or a urogynecologist. Go to your local hospital website and search on these specialities. If you want a referral and you live in the northeast I might be able to help.
Some commom treatment options are Kegels, injection or a minimally invasive procedure called a sling.
The good news is these options work and you probably don't have to live with this.
Let me know if you have anymore questions and good luck.

Instead of a urologist, go see your regular gynocologist or a urogynocologist and get a referral to a Physical Therapist who specializes in women's health. The therapist will perscribe the right exercises for you and make sure you are doing them correctly, assess if you need any further intervention like biofeedback. I would absolutely try going the conservative route before considering surgery. Good luck!

The best cure for stress incontinence is Keigle exercises. You're having problems because your pelvic floor muscles are so weak. You should be doing 20 to 30 Keigles every day. (The right muscle is the one that allows you to stop peeing in mid-stream.) After you've located that muscle, you can do the exercises anytime, anywhere and noone will know you're doing them. Just clench the muscle and release. When you get a little stronger, try clenching and holding for a count of ten. Ideally you want to get to the point where you can hold and then release in little controlled steps. I did this after the birth of my daughter and it really took care of the incontinence.

If you're having difficulties finding the correct muscle or the exercises don't seem to be having much effect after a couple of months, you should talk to your gynocologist. She can recommend physical therapy where they use biofeedback to help you learn to control those muscles.

I have five year old b/g twins and I have the same problem. I guess I need to ask my doctor about it. I have no advice, but know you aren't alone.

Three words...Do your kegals. This exercise will help prevent that. Want to know how to do a kegal. When your going pee, stop the stream by tightening those muscles. You can do them anywhere. Sitting in your car at a traffic light, while you shower in the morning, you name it. They say to rebuild the muscles you should do them for 10 reps a couple times a day. Just tighten and hold for a count of 10.

JUMP ROPE! Or jump on a trampoline. Do this daily for a number of weeks (6-8) or longer to maintain the conditioning your body needs. (Just remember to wear a liner or pad when you begin!) This is a perfectly normal experience for almost all mothers who birthed naturally. And if you do not excercise your body to re-gain the strength, it may continue for years.... so start jumping!

Hi K.,
I also have b/g twins. They are now seven years old. They were both wonderful healthy babies when they were born. My son weighed 7lbs 6ozs and my daughter was 6lbs 1oz. Yes, I had a lot of weight on my bladder! I too have had the same issues since they were born. I have had repeated discussions with my doctor and she recommended that I incorporate Kegel exercises in my daily routine. It has helped somewhat. It's supposed to be the best way to help rebuild the muscles in the pelvic floor. She also suggested maybe trying Detrol La but I wasn't crazy about the idea of taking a prescription medicine for my urinary incontinence.
Best of luck to you and Kegel away!
J.